The small, funny-looking black and white squares you have been seeing on fliers, magazines, newspapers or billboards may not mean a lot to you.

However, they are on their way to being the next big in the advertising and marketing industry. With a simple scan using a smart phone, these codes send valuable data to consumers, which can make a big difference in sales for small businesses.

Quick response codes are similar to the popular barcodes that have become a common thing in retail businesses. The difference is that QR codes are more than just codes: they are more advanced and can be an access point to websites and other media pages.

This is considered to be a simple, yet advanced method of information-sharing through the integration of multimedia and print capabilities. QR codes engage your customers through devices that they carry around most of time; providing you with an affordable advertisement and promotion tool.

The use of Quick Response codes to market businesses is rapidly on the rise and small businesses are expected to embrace method to increase their traffic and sales over the next several years.

It is not a matter of whether other businesses are using it or whether people know about these codes; eventually everyone will be using them and you will be at an advantage if you start using these codes early enough.

Consumers are always hungry for information and will surf the internet way before they visit a store to make a purchase. With the astonishing rise in mobile phone usage over the past few years, small businesses should start implementing mobile marketing methods that will allow them to maintain stable communication between them and their customers.

If you’re looking for an exciting way to keep in touch with your existing customers as well as reach out to new customers, QR codes could be the edge you need.